Track belt



` May 22, 1923.

C. F.'-HEINKEL TRACK BELT 21Sheets-Sheet l July 22, 1920 i Mm M May 22,1923. 1,456,378

c. F. HEINKEL TRACK BELT Filed July 22, 1920 2 sheets-sheet 2 INVENTORATTORNEY Patented May 22, 1923.

UNITED srArEs PATENT orrrcr.

CHRISTIAN I". II'EIIIIIL', or'cnnvnnnnn, oI'IIo, AssIC-nony'ro'rIIiaCtEvELANiJ TRACTORCCMPANY, or ECLID, OHIO, A CORPORATION oFoHIo.

TRACK BELT. l

Application cleanly 22, 1920. serial No. 398,264.

To aZZ whom# may concern:

Be -it known that I, GHRISTIANF. HEINKEL, a citizen of the UnitedStates, residing at Cleveland', in the county of Cuyahoga' and State ofOhio, have invented a certain' new and useful Improvement in TrackBelts, of which the followingV is a full, clear,-and exact description.

This invention is in the nature of au improvement uponthe track beltwhich forms the subject matter of the application of' Mathew B.Morfram-Serial No. 398,262 filed July 22, 1920. n the track belt shownin the said Morgan application alternate links are dierently shaped,which is a practical disadvantage.

The object of the present invention isto produce a track belt made upofA a plurality of links which embody certain characteristics ofconstruction disclosed in the Morgan application, but which neverthelessare eX- actly alike. The track belt herein shown is somewhat cheaperthan that shown in the Morgan application.

In the drawing, Fig. 1 is-a plan view of a three link section of' atrack belt embodying the invention. In this view portions ofthetopplates of the three links are broken away and the parts therebydisclosed are shown in horizontal section through the axis .of the pivotpins; Fig. 2 isa sectional side elevation in the plane of line 2 2 onFig. 1, and Fig. 3' is a sectional side elevation in the plane of line3-3 on Fig. 1; Fig. 4 isA an end view of one of said links;'Figs. 5 and'6 are perspective views which show the so-called track members, Fig. 5showing the closed end'of one of said trackl members, and Fig.v 6showing the open end thereof.

The track belt embodying the present invention is made up of a pluralityof links or units which are exactly alike. Each of these comprises abottom plate or shoe 10, and two track members secured thereon by.bolts'12 or other suitable means.

The two track members 20 applied to each shoe 10 are exactly alike. Eachof these track members is drawn from a flat' sheet metal-blank intothe'formof a flatsidedcup having a closed bottom 21 andt'wo fiat sides22,423. Whenthe cup-shaped trackkmember is first drawn into shape thefiatesidesthere'- of are connected by outwardlybent'lishaped strap loopswhich 'arie then thefullwidth of? the flat sides.4 Thereafter the straploops are slitted las'pshownl and aI portion of 'each' loop is Y bentinward, that 1 is,"y toward' the! ope' posite end `of the member so`- asto form'th'e' reversely curved'str'aps` 25i 'Ihesefreversely-l curvedstraps 25? are locatedy as'shown', that is, at one end,k of the trfackmember the reij versely curvedlstrap'25 is adj ac`ent`theclosed side 21thereof, while at the otherI enditis adjacent the open side thereof.Like-wise, the reversely curved strap 25 at one endis' longitudinallyaligned with-and ofthe salme width as a strap loop 24 at the other end?of said member. Preferably the strap loops and straps adjacent theclosed side ofthe track member are narrower than those at the open sideof said trackmember.

WVhen two of these track `membersare `applied' to a bottom plate 10, toform a' link',

one of thefflat sides 22 becomes the bottom for end with respect to theother-and the closed sides`21 thereof are placedin Contact along thelongitudinal central line o-f the shoe. They are 'then moved" relativelylengthwise of the'` shoe to whatever extent may be necessary to bringtwo outwardly bent strap loops 2lon't'he two tra'clrmem bersintotransverse alignment. At the-'same time the two reversely' curved straps25' at the same end of thelink will also lbe in' transverse alignment.

In order'to pivot'allyconnect two off the described links, thelsaidlink's are arranged in longitudinall alignment, withY the straploops 24 on one overlapping the'st'rap'loops 24 on the other,-the narrowstrap loop near the longitudinal center of each linkl going into thespace' between theftwo strap loops on` the other.v When the two linksarel in proper relationf -as showntra'n's've'rse'y e'y'e will -be formedbetween the overlapping strap loops on the two links; and a pivot pin isthen passed through this eye.

Attention is called to the fact that when two links have been connectedas described, the ends of the strap loops on each link are in engagementwith the reversely carved straps on the other. These engaging surfaceson the strap loops and straps are parts of the surface of a cylinderwhose axis is coincident with the axis of the pivot pin.

In the construction shown the so-called track members not only furnishmeans for connecting two links together, but they furnish a track forthe track wheels (which are mounted on thetractor) said track consistingof those portions of two track members which extend from their meetingsides in both directions to the slits which divide the U-shaped straploops from the reversely curved straps. The portions 23a of the topmembers so referred to, adjacent the longitudinal center of the link,are depressed below the other portions of said top members extending tothe sides of the members, thereby forming a channel in which the trackwheels are guided.

. Having described my claim n l. Atrack belt unit, comprisingashoe, andtwo like track members secured thereon, each invention, I

, track member consisting of lsubstantially horizontal top and bottomplates and two integral straps connecting said bottom plates at each endthereof, one strap at each end being an outwardly bent strap loop andone a reversely curved strap, and each outwardly bent strap loop beingin longitudinal alignment with a reversely bent strap at the other endof-said member, said track members being turned end for end and beingapplied to the shoe on opposite sides of the longitudinal central lineof said .shoe and in such positions relative to each other that thestraps at each end of one member are in transverse alignment with thecorre-spondingly shaped straps on the other member.

2. A track belt unit comprising a shoe and two like track memberssecured thereon each track member consisting of substantially horizontaltop and bottom plates and two integral straps connecting said bottomplates at each end thereof one strap at each end being an outwardly bentstrap loop and one a reversely curved strap and each outwardly bentstrap loop being in longitudinal alignment a with a reversely bent straploop at the other end of said member, said track members being turnedend for end and being applied to to lthe shoe on opposite sides of thelongitudinal central line of said shoe and in such positions relative toeach other that the nishing a longitudinally extended track wheelchannel extending from one end of the link to the other.

3. A track belt comprising a plurality of pivoted together links, eachof which comprises a shoe, and two like track'members secured thereon,each track member consisting of substantially horizontal top and bottomplates and two integral straps connecting said plates at each endthereof, one strap at each end being an outwardly bent strap loop andone a reversely curvedstrap, and each outwardly bent strap loop being inlongitudinal alignment with the reversely curved strap at the other endof said member,-said track members being turned end for end and beingapplied to the shoe on opposite sides of the-longitudinal central lineof said shoe and in such position relative to each other that the strapsateach end of one member are in transverse alignment with thecorrespondingly shaped straps on the other member, said links beingarranged in longitudinal alignment with the straploops on each linkoverlapping the strap loops on the adjacent ends of contiguous links,and a pintle pin fitted into the eye formed by the overlapping straploops of contiguous links. e v

4. A track belt comprising a plurality of pivoted together links each ofwhich comprises a shoe, and two like track members secured thereon, eachtrack member consisting of substantially horizontal top and bottomplates and two integral straps connecting said plates at each endthereof, one strap at each end being an outwardly bent strap loop andone a reversely curved strap and each outwardly bent strap loop being inlongitudinal alignment with the reversely curved strap at the other endof Isaid member said track members being turnedend for end and beingapplied to the shoe on opposite sides of the longitudinal central lineof said shoe and in such position relative to each other that the strapsat each end of one member are in Vtransverse alignment with thecorrespondingly shaped straps on the other member, said links beingarranged in longitudinal alignment with the strap loops on each linkoverlapping thev strap loops on the adjacent ends of contiguous links,and a pintle pin fitted into the eye formed by the overlapping stra-ploops of contiguous links, the end ofeach strap loop on one link beingin engagement with the end of reversely curved Istraps on the contiguouslinks and the. engaging surfaces of said strap loops and straps beingcurved on an axis coincident with the axis ot the adjacent pivo't pin.

5. A track belt unit for track laying tractors comprising duplicatelongitudinally extending cupshaped members secured side by side withtheir closed sides together, said members having substantiallyhorizontal top and bottom portions, the adjacent top portions of whichprovide a continuous longitudinal roller bearing surface centrally ofsaid unit.

6. A track belt unit for tracklaying tractors compri-sing duplicateinterchangeable longitudinally extending cupshaped members secured sideby side with their closed sides, together, the adjacent top portions ofsuch members being depressed to form a roller guideway and having theirends lying in different longitudinal planes when assembled together.

7. A track belt unit for track laying tractors comprising duplicateinterchangeable longitudinally extending cupshaped members secured-sideby side with their closed sides together, said members havingsubstantially horizontal top and bottom portions, the adjacent topportions of which provide a continuous longitudinal roller bearingsurface.

CHRISTIAN F. HEINKEL.

signature.

